


The Real Me

by Vllumi



Series: Rhack 1shots [1]
Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Rhys is the seventh siren, Siren Rhys (Borderlands), Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-09
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:34:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23083279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vllumi/pseuds/Vllumi
Summary: Rhys and Jack contemplate their relationship and where it will go.Demo to an au I have in the works.
Relationships: Handsome Jack/Rhys (Borderlands)
Series: Rhack 1shots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1660291
Comments: 1
Kudos: 57





	The Real Me

**Author's Note:**

> IMPORTANT: Things you should note to understand minor details mentioned here. This is an au where most of the sirens like Lilith, Maya, Steele, Amara, and Tyreen are together as a "sister hood" if you will. Rhys was a part of this but is currently working for Hyperion, he's also the seventh siren warned about. No, Troy doesn't exists. Yes, Angel is alive. This is a demo to the au and also something for me to practice writing. I'm going to finish my current fic before I start this one though.

Rhys was awake but he didn’t move, didn’t open his eyes, and didn't talk. Rhys could have let Jack know that he was awake but he was too busy focusing on Jack lightly tracing Rhys’ each individual tattoos. It was oddly sweet if not calming. To think that the same man responsible for airlocking workers and blowing people’s heads off was capable of a gentle gesture. Then again Jack thought Rhys was asleep so it’s not like Rhys would remember or even know of this. Or at least that’s what Jack thought, which wasn’t lost on Rhys.

If Rhys was honest he was slightly uncomfortable. He knows what Hyperion’s intentions with sirens are. Rhys trusted Jack, or so Rhys told himself that everytime he talked to the boss. But a part in the back of his mind kept telling him to be wary of Jack, that one day Jack would turn on him because he can’t pass up the chance to use the strongest siren known to his advantage.

Rhys’ body tensed out of reflex.

Rhys felt Jack stop his movements, his hand hovering slightly above Rhys’ waist. Rhys relaxed, sighing as he let warmth of Jack's body engulf him again. He trusted Jack.

Feeling Jack's hand continue to trail each tattoo, now on his hip, Rhys let himself smile. He dared to open his eyes only to see Jack looking down at Rhys's tattoos. Jack scowled as his hands tentatively trailed lower.

"Watch you hand there, Handsome."

Jack's eye snapped up to look at Rhys, his hand moving away just as quickly. The initial look of shock quickly morphed to a cocky grin. "Hey… uh-" Jack studied Rhys' lazy grin. "-morning, Cupcake. H- how long have you been up?"

Rhys stretched before snuggling up closer to Jack, sighing as he closed his eyes. "Long enough." 

"So you…"

"Yup." Rhys chuckled quietly, enjoying the feeling of Jack resting his head on top of Rhys', though reluctantly. "You don't need to stop you know? Just cause I'm awake. I won't bite." Rhys mumbled.

Jack only hummed in response, his hand slowly making its way back to tracing Rhys' tattoos. "M'yeah? What, you like it?" 

"Mm hm… it's oddly comforting."

"Why oddly?"

"Cause it's you doing it, Dum-Dum." Rhys pointed with a laugh.

Jack scoffed and rolled his eyes, but refused to move from his current position. "Wow, Rhysie, real mature. Use my own pet names against me." Jack clung to Rhys, taking a deep breath. "Seriously though, why's it odd?"

"Well-" Rhys huffed. "-you're Handsome Jack. You yell at workers and if you're not yelling then you're threatening, no matter how friendly you try to sound. You airlock anyone who does a shit job and shoot at anyone who you're suspicious of. You also have a tendency to strangle people which may or may not be concerning." Rhys pushed back to look at Jack in the eyes, searching for any warning signs. He found none.

"Well, Princess, you don't have to be worried about me strangling you in bed, that's a veeery different type of passion." Jack gave Rhys a lazy grin before continuing. "And ok, yes I may do some less than savory-"

"Down right horrifying, but go on."

"Some less than savory-" Jack gave Rhys a rather weak glare. "- stuff, but it's all for the best. I'm helping the world by getting rid of backstabbing monsters and an shit workers that are no good for this world. Even when killing bandits, it's for the sake of a better world, one with order. That's what I like." Jack huffed and pulled Rhsy back to lay his head on top the siren's.

"Jack, you laughed and said 'nothing better than killing some schmuck in the morning' last night." Rhys grimaced. "I don't know whether to be more concerned over your sanity or the fact that you said 'morning' at night."

"It's space, Rhys, the difference between morning and night means nothing to us." Jack chirped.

"You literally created a time zone for Helios, but go off"

"You got any more sass in you, Cupcake?" 

"A lot, actually. But I like saving it for comedic timing." Rhys laughed. "It's just that…"

Jack's hand stopped right below Rhys' hip. He took a deep breath, looking nowhere in particular. Jack knew what this was about, he wanted to be angry at Rhys but he couldn't blame the guy for thinking what he did. "This…" Jack tapped on Rhys' tattoo. "This is about you being scared of me, right? That I'm going to use you to find a vault?" Jack quickly grabbed Rhys' wrist and pulled it over Rhys' head. Climbing on top the man, Jack looked down to meet Rhys' eyes. Rhys looked calm, but the light of his tattoos coming to life told a different story. 

"Jack, I-"

Jack sighed, letting go of Rhys. He pulled back, his blankets sliding off his body to expose him to the cool air. He really couldn't blame Rhys. Jack sat on the edge of his bed and grabbed a nearby sweater and pulled it on. Rubbing his hands across his mask, Jack tried to stand up until Rhys grabbed onto the back of his sweater. 

"Sorry, that was just instinct. I- it's not because it was you."

"Don't worry about it, Rhys, I get it. Really I do." Jack sat back down, turning his head ever so slightly to get a glimpse at Rhys. "You…. You're the seventh siren. Truly something to be feared. You got all the known siren abilities and more. Who wouldn't want your power." Jack shook his head and looked out his window. The soft glow of Ellis illuminating the room in purple. "Tsk. I mean look at me. Used my own daughter, captured that bitch Lilith to use her power to. All because I was afraid of what they were capable of."

Rhys let go of Jack's sweater and sat back, keeping his gaze on the back of Jack's head.

"You know why this started. Sure, part of it was me wanting to fix Pandora. But another part was me wanting to help my daughter, understand those powers and keep them in check. I mean after Angel kil-" Jack took a shaky breath. "After Angel killed her mother, well that's when things started to go down hill. Lilith was more personal. After she betrayed me and left her mark on me, well, I had my mind set on what to do with her."

"And me?"

"And you what?" Jack didn't turn to look at Rhys.

"Well, in the end you were scared of both of them. For different reasons, sure, but you were scared." Rhys crawled towards Jack, joining him on the edge of the bed. Rhys pulled the blankets towards himself and wrapped them around both of them. "What about me?"

"I won't lie to you, Rhys. You scare me." Jack sighed. "There are warnings about your existence. Sure you helped me with Angel, now she's doing better and doesn't need as much of that eridium crap to live. But you also let Lilith escape. You stole information and gave it to that blue haired one. And finally, you warned the two white haired ones about the ambush on Sanctuary." 

"That was before I knew you. But, Jack-" Rhys took a deep breath. "I'll admit, I'd do it again if it meant their safety was in question." Rhys spoke quietly, glancing up at Jack from time to time to see his reaction. 

Jack didn't give Rhys any indication that he was angry, but not that he was happy either.

"We were a sisterhood, in a sense. I love you, but I also love them and no matter what I can't allow you to hurt them."

Jack was silent, his eyes now closed as he listened to Rhys. Jack couldn't complain, he too looked out for those in his team. Jack remembered the disappointment he felt when Athena left him, the anger he felt when Nisha and Wilhelm were killed. Jack also remembers the fear of almost losing Angel, the lack of remorse after killing Roland as a warning. He remembers it all too well. Jack took another shaky breath.

"Jack?"

"I know, Rhys. I don't expect you to betray your uhh… sisterhood. I don't like backstabbers, I've dealt with enough of them and if you turned out to be one yourself, I'd be disappointed."

"So what now, Jack? I will never give you nor let you have the other sirens. And if you ever try to do anything against me I'd run away without hesitation" Rhys searched for Jack's eyes but the man refused to look at him. "Being a siren in this world is a weakness, in a sense only you and the other sirens know I exist."

"Don't you have those friends umm, Vaughn, Yvette and those two bandits?"

"Sure they know me. And they're my best friends in the world. But they don't actually know me. They know Rhys Strongfork, but they don't know Rhys the seventh siren." Rhys sighed. "What I'm trying to say is that despite the fear I have in the back of my mind I do trust that you won't hurt me. And you know that. While, yes, you accidentally found out what I am, I still stayed by your side." Rhys laid his head on top of Jack's shoulder.

Jack didn't move away, slowly laying his head on top of Rhys', both of them fitting together like a puzzle piece. "Then what do you say I do?"

"You have everything you need, Jack. Quit vault hunting."

Jack sucked in a harsh breath, moving his head away from Rhys in favor of looking down at his hands.

"I know it's hard to give up such a hobby, the thrill, the power. It's hard to stop. But look what it's done to you. Angel is… She's doing better but you and I both know that the chances of her needing some dosage of eridium for the rest of her life is high."

Jack's eyes burned with the threat of tears. Blinking hard and quick, he looked back at the window trying to keep his composure.

"And-" Rhys paused, choosing his words wisely. "-I know you had good intentions, really, but was finding the vault of the Sentinel really worth it?" Rhys' hand lifted up to touch the clasp on Jack's chin. Feeling the man tense up, Rhys stayed still. Hand still on the clasp. "I showed you my weakness…" Rhys touched the clasp until he heard a small click come from it. "...now show me yours."

Jach raised his hand to grab Rhys'. He halted Rhys' movement before guiding his hand to the other claps holding his mask.

Once all the clasps were undone, Rhys saw as the mask stiffened up and the hologram on Jack's left eye disappeared, revealing a gaping hole. Just as Rhys was going to pull the mask away Jack grabbed his wrist again. "Jack-"

"Rhys, I-" Jack's voice broke slightly, raising his other hand to also grasp Rhys' wrist. "I don't want to do this." His voice sounded muffled, now talking against the hard mask.

Rhys raised the mask slightly above Jack's nose, enough to reveal his lips. Rhys looked at the marred flesh on Jack's cheeks. He had heard of the scar but Jack always refused to show it to him. The odd blue discoloration, the sunken and cracked skin. A scar left by an alien relic. Rhys attention went back to Jack as he felt the man's hand let go of his wrist. Finally pulling the mask away Rhys controlled his expression as to not upset Jack. 

Rhys wasn't ready for what he saw. 

The tan lines on Jack's face were insane. His face pale beyond belief, telling Rhys that Jack hadn't removed that mask in years, and if he did remove the mask it wasn't for long. The scar across his face was larger and scarier than Rhys imagined. The empty eye socket coupled with the sickly discoloration around both his eyes and lips.

What left Rhys in awe though, was the faint glow the scar had. Rhys thought that it was the light coming from Elpis, but there was no denying that the scar itself was glowing. 

It was hypnotizing.

“Sexy, isn’t it?” Jack laughed bitterly. “Guess this scar is a representation of the monster people say I am.” Jack felt the tears finally roll down his face, he sucked in a breath before speaking quietly, words caught in his throat. “Everything… everything I ever did w- was for Angel. I- I- I just wanted to protect her!” Jack choked on his words, now sounding frustrated. “After what happened to her mother I just… I just wanted a better world for her, and if that meant blowing up an entire shit hole of a planet then so be it!” 

Rhys listened, holding Jack close as he sobbed.

“I lost my wife, I’m losing Angel. Please, Rhys,” Jack spoke quietly, “I don’t want to lose you.”

Rhys’ let his tattoos glow as he bumped his forehead against Jack’s. “You’re a beautiful man, Jack.” Rhys’ voice was soft, but loud enough for Jack to hear him. “And you won't lose Angel, nor me. But, Jack, you have to quit this vault hunting business, you need to leave the sirens alone. You’ve let power blind you. I know somewhere inside you, the young Pandoran boy who survived his awful grandmother and dreamened of a good life would tell you that you've achieved his dreams, that you don’t need to go further.”

Jack looked down towards Rhys’ glowing tattoos, his hand going back to trace them. “What have I done to deserve you?” Jack grabbed Rhys’ hand, rubbing his thumb across it.

Rhys chuckled quietly. “I’m not here because you deserve me, Jack.” Rhys leaned in and kissed Jack on the lips, relishing in the thought of finally feeling his real face and not his mask. “I’m here because I want to help you.”

Jack smiled, guiding Rhy’ head to rest back on his shoulder and wrapped his arm around Rhys’ waist. “I love you, Rhysie.”

“I love you too, Jack.”


End file.
